17 schools fined for unauthorised fee hike

The Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec) has fined 17 private schools in the emirate for “unauthorised fee hike”.

In a statement to Emirates24|7, Adec informed that Private Schools and Quality Assurance (PSQA) sector issued fines and warning letters to 17 private schools for “tampering with ADEC's approved school fee structure”.

The discrepancy in fee structure was detected following various inspections and compliance visits, reported the council.

Parents of the students enrolled in these schools had also forwarded Adec their fee receipts that enabled the officials to establish the blatant disregard to their fee guideline.
 
Adec, however, has not divulged the names or curricula of the schools.

Adec informed that of the 185 private schools in the emirate, 47 schools are allowed to increase their fees for the 2014-2015 academic year. The average mark-up was 7 per cent across all schools.

Schools that employed a significant number of Emiratis, invested in school infrastructure and offered professional development to their staff were given priority.

According to the education board, 14 private schools opened during the academic year 2014-15.

“The new schools will provide 19,115 more seats,” an Adec official spokesperson confirmed.

For the year 2020, Adec anticipates a “continuous growth in the student population at a CAGR of 5% across the emirate. This is expected to touch 283,798 students by the year 2020-2021”.

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